Tattoo! Help Me!!!

[Leith]

Ok, I have the tattoo urge, and I have it BAAAAAAAAAD!

Im want one of these on my back, about 20cm long....

BUT I CANT DECIDE WHICH ONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[VirulentWaif]

Prefer the top one Leith, Aside from the curve it looks less conveluted and yet contains the sybolism. Whereas the second looks too blocky, is too over detailed and also like the artist was trying to fit as many symbols of egyptology into the design at once.

Cobra cartouche: (Uraeus)The emblem of the Lower Nile and is associated with the king of said region, also associated with the sun and many dieties. The Uraeus is seen worn on the center front of the headdress of royalty, and is used as a protective symbol as egyptians believed it spat fire at approaching enemies.

Winged Disk: (Horus Behudety)In the form of Horus of Edfu, this symbol represents the midday sun. The Hurus was worshipped in the western Delta regions and much later in the Upper Nile. In the cartouche he is depicted as a large sweeping pair of wings that curves across the sky with a sun disk at the midway point with two Uraeus, one on each side of the disk. This cartouche first appeared when a large temple was built in Edfu to house the cult of Horus, and to assist Horus in his great battle with Seth.

In the bottom diagram there is the confusing addon cartouche of "Shen" or the loop of rope without begining or end, and it represents protection. The Shen is used in many locations in egyptian cartouche, hovering over the head of the pharoh, containing the sun disk, even clutched in the claws of Horus and Mut (the vulture). But to dangle it off the necks of the cobra is both wrong and highly suspect, and definatly shows that the design is drawn by someone who doesnt bother to read up on egyptian mythology before drawing. Unlike the Cobra protection cartouche only one Shen would be drawn, made, or shown as it is a very powerful protection spell.

[VirulentWaif]

oh an one other thing I just noticed about the bottom emblem, is whoever designed it messed up big time. They drew the Uraeus wearing the red crown that represented the Lower nile region (Deshret) and the white crown that represented the Upper Nile region (Hedjet). Now you might think that there is nothing really wrong with this, but in Egyptian times if you ruled both regions the crowns were cojoined, the white crown of the upper Nile and the red crown of the lower Nile ( Pshent). If they were both shown they were joined to show the representation of strengh, to show both seperate shows the weakness of the pharoh that the cartouche would have belonged to, once again showing the stupidity of the person who drew it.
One other point, the Uraeus were an adornment on the crown, not shown wearing the crown, this once again shows that the bottom design is drawn by a westener who knows nothing about egyptology, has made no effort to understand the intracasies of the belief systems, and just likes drawing pretty pictures :P.

[Leith]

Apparently the bottom one is the Winged Disc of Thebes (Egyptian Mythology and Egyptian Christianity by Samuel Sharp 1863) Im wondering why it came to me and caught my attention. I thought the symbols hanging off the snakes necks were "Omega", and was wondering about the greek conection.

Im not sure if a droopy wing look on my back will do me justice. I kinda prefer the square across look. I'll try some others!

How about these?

[VirulentWaif]

Once again the top one is right and the bottom one is pictorialy incorrect as the Uraeus are shown wearing the two crowns of the Lower and Upper Nile.

Deshret (Lower Nile)

Hedjet (Upper Nile)

Pshent (Conjoined Upper and Lower Nil regions eg supreme leader of the egyptian regions)
To show the Uraeus as individually wearing each of the crowns is incorrect in it's self as the uraeus were actually mounted on the front of the crowns as a sign of attack protection. The crowns were never shown individually, unless the pharoh only ruled over one of the regions, if a Pharoh was the ruler of both regions he would wear the Pshent crown, with a Uraeus mounted on the front.
But to show the wings of Horus spread wide and straight is the correct 'egyptian' way of representing Horus. This is a form that the god Horus Behudety (Horus of Edfu) takes in his battles with Seth. The god Thoth used his magic to turn Horus into a sun-disk with splendid outstretched wings. The goddesses Nekhbet and Uazet in the form of uraeus snakes joined him at his side.

[Leith]

Thank you James, this is all very helpful although making my choice even harder. I KNOW I want one on my back, but I need the right one!
Ive been trying to find it.

Do you have an appropriate picture? I wanted a genuine disc, not one that I had altered or a modern interpretation. If need be I will alter the Disc of Thebes by taking off the crowns and the omega fingy as I like the basic design, but then it wont be genuine. It also needs to be fairly simple.

I altered the Zoroastrian version by taking out Mazda:

But I would prefer an Egyptian design like this one:

Except that doesnt have the Uraeus.
Do you have a pic, or know where to get a pic of the earliest known depiction? Im fussy, but a Tattoo is kinda permanent. ;-)

Happy New Year!

[Leith]

[VirulentWaif]

Now Your just showing off that fine piece of male muscley back you have now gawds :P.
Ill have a look around through some of my egyptology piccies, but if you took off the 'omega' (shen) symbols that one would be perfect, and you could even put the omega (shen) back on but in the top of the picture above the disk, on your upper shoulders or lower neck region.

Happy new Year Mate, dont drink too many tinnies by strewth :P

[Leith]

OR I could just go with this, which looks DAMN good!

Thanks James.
Have a drink or 10 for me, as I dont really drink anymore.... unfortunately.

[VirulentWaif]

Damn there is a few weeks of pain awaiting that tattoo. But yes it looks awsome.
Same as for the drinks too, Im trying to loose the bulge myself, been walking every day, twice a day for five weeks now. Gimmie a few months and Ill be swimming again without having to get the public shoed out of the pool before I jump in :P.
anyway Happy new year :P.

[Leith]

Ok, this is getting more and more expensive and painful, but here is something more towards a final decision!!
Its gonna have to be done little by little as I can afford it I fink! (Unless Teek wants to cut me a deal hehehe)

[Leith]

YAY! Its been DONE!

$300 and 3 hours later.......

TAH-DAAAAH!

Im very pleased with how it turned out.
The first two hours were fine. I was getting that goose bump causing searing pain which I kinda like in a weird masochistic kinda way... but then the last hour or so was just SEARING PAIN and I swore at the tattooist a couple of times as Im pretty sure he managed to TATTOO THE BONE!
All in all, it was worth it! Doncha Fink?

Only problem is its on my back so I don't get to look at it....... :-(

[Samhains]

nice tat man :)
good work..